Nevadans Under New Laws

More information on Nevada sex offenders will be available to the public starting Saturday, under a new law that's among a handful of measures from the 2005 Legislature to finally take effect.

The law change is among sections of 13 bills from the 2005session that had delayed startup dates. All told, 521 bills werepassed by Nevada legislators at their regular session last year.

The sex offender law, SB341 ensures that the public will havebetter information about such offenders. Instead of only a ZIPcode, an offender's address will be shown on a state Web site,www.nvsexoffenders.gov.

The change will affect nearly 32,000 Tier 2 and Tier 3 sexoffenders, who are considered moderate to high risk for committingmore sex crimes. Also, sex offenders must renew their driver'slicenses or state identification cards every year.

The new law calls for the state to have complete addresses ofany residences where the convicted sex offender has lived, and thenumber of the street block but not the specific street number ofany location where the offender works or is a student.

The law says an offender convicted of a crime against a childwho commits a second or subsequent offense within seven years ofthe first violation shall not be entitled to probation or asuspended sentence.

Some sex offenders have expressed concern that they'll betargeted for harassment, vandalism or worse. But Senate MajorityLeader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, a co-sponsor of the law, said thoseconcerns are outweighed by the need to protect children.

Other new laws with July 1 effective dates for key sectionsinclude:

-SB394, which gives Nevada golf courses a tax break by declaringthem open space for property tax purposes. The tax break, sought bythe Nevada Golf Course Owners Association, enables the courses tohave an assessed value of about $1,000 an acre, about one-tenth ofwhat some high-end courses had been paying.

-SB314, one of the measures sought by lawmakers for pet andpork-barrel projects at the end of the 2005 session. The billprovides, among other things, $600,000 for restoration andpreservation of the Lear Theater in Reno; $200,000 for the CowboyPoetry Gathering in Elko; $220,000 to the Atomic Testing Museum inLas Vegas; and $650,000 to help implement the Truckee Riverrecreational master plan for Reno, Sparks and Washoe County.

Legislative leaders have said the "pork" designation isunwarranted for such measures, but SB314 meets the classicdefinition of "pork" - funding that benefits a particularlegislator's pet project or district.

-AB202 requires schools to have a uniform system of reportingharassment or bullying, and mandates staff training. The law rankedhigh on American Civil Liberties Union lobbyist Laura Mijanovich'slist of 2005 legislative victories for immigrants. Mijanovich saidimmigrant children, particularly Muslim girls who wear headscarves,are often bullied, and school employees don't always deal with thecomplaints.

-AB63, which prohibits insurance companies from denying claimsbased solely on the fact that someone was injured while intoxicatedor under the influence of a controlled substance.

-AB42, which states that it's in the best interests of fosterchildren to remain with their siblings.

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